SINGLE REVIEW: MASSIVE SCAR ERA - COLOR BLIND
Last year as Egyptian/Canadian band ‘Massive Scar Era’ touched down on US soil to play at the prestigious SXSW festival they were inexplicably denied entrance by US border patrol. Vocalist and co-founder Cherine Amp recalls “although Egypt wasn’t on Trump’s ban list along with being granted the visas rom the American embassy, the border agents didn’t allow us into the country. We were given multiple inexplicable excuses.” Adding to a long list of obstacles and ordeals that the post hardcore band have faced over the years, ‘Massive Scar Era’ have hit back with their latest single ‘Color Blind’ from their upcoming EP of the same name. In ‘Color Blind’ the band waste no time hiding behind vague metaphors and get straight to the point with this strikingly powerful protest song about the ongoing issues of racism and discrimination that is still a very large problem in a supposedly progressive society. Amr’s vocals shine loud and clear with lyrics such as “Let me into your universe, let me be another source of life… I pray God turns us all color blind.” and “Take my skin I’ll get a new one with rainbows and butterflies. In colours you see me Black or White.”
Amr’s clean vocal approach carries the weight of most of the song with startling effect as she pours every emotion into her delivery from pain, anger and despair all the way to the underlying message of hope for a better tomorrow. Her clean vocals are then juxtaposed spectacularly in the final act as she descends into raw screams that hammer the message home with such wild ferocity that it is impossible to ignore. Meanwhile, the rest of the band are at their a-game as Nancy Mounir’s violin parts add an extra sombre dimension to the already chilling guitar instrumentation. Politics aside, ‘Color Blind’ is already a great song, but with the added message and a compelling video to accompany it, ‘Massive Scar Era’ have released a powerful and very important protest song and we cannot wait to hear what else they have in store for us.
